Posts archive for March, 2017

Across the innovation landscape, agility matters. Fast innovators are 42% stronger, 27% more disruptive, get new products to market quickly and generate 30% more revenue from those products.[1] And yet, 90% of CEOs across all industries remain unsatisfied with their year/over/year progress and returns on innovation. They are plagued by a lack visibility across their complex innovation portfolios and processes. This poor transparency translates into billions of dollars in waste and Innovation DragTM across the industry.

Entrepreneur Angelique Mohring founded her company GainX in 2012 after spending two decades as a technology executive, working for large enterprise software organizations such as OpenText. “After working with Global 1000s for 20+ years as a tech executive and global change agent, I realized I had the skills, passion and expertise to help the world’s biggest businesses better understand and overcome the innovation challenge and finally realize real financial payback from their efforts,” says Angelique. “I want people to understand that innovation is so more than simply counting ideas. It is about cultural and digital transformation, and it is about producing measurable business impact.”

GainX, a fast-growing leader in the FinTech market (the company will target other sectors but is initially focused on Financial Services) is leading and defining the Innovation Strategy Management (ISM) market, providing financial services companies with the critical bridge between innovation happening at the edge of business and the core enterprise.

Recently, GainX released the findings of a benchmark survey it conducted on behalf of the Canadian financial services industry assessing the innovation capacity of Canada’s leading financial services institutions (FSIs). More than 375 executives and employees participated in the analysis, which captured both data and semantic analytics on innovation derived from their respective organizations. More than 27,000 data points were analyzed through the GainX platform, and FSIs were plotted on an innovation maturity curve, measured against the critical gains necessary for innovation and transformation, including strategy and clarity of vision, appetite for risk, digital enablement, culture, and engagement and collaboration.

While the Canadian FS executives and employees surveyed all identified innovation as a top priority, our analysis found that the sector’s capacity to achieve those goals remains limited. 77% of Canadian FSIs surveyed indicated they lacked an integrated innovation process, and only half (51%) believed their organization to be innovative. More than 90% of those surveyed indicated they lacked a clear, actionable digital strategy and effective tools and technology systems, representing significant barriers to innovation and growth.[2]

After joining the Accelerator Centre in 2015, Angelique has been able to drive the business forward, landing key deployments of the GainX platform in several Canadian banks. Thanks to critical AC JumpStart funding made available through FedDev Ontario, she’s also expanding her presence into the US, the UK and other international markets.

“It’s been powerful to be at the Accelerator Centre and to be able to tap into the fantastic network to draw on the resources most needed to help our company grow. The JumpStart funding provided yet another critical stepping-stone in our company’s development and growth.

“We are on the brink of massive change in the innovation market,” says Mohring. “The emergence of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies will provide a critical catalyst for innovation, by allowing organizations to unburden smart people from administrative tasks, and to put the right people on the right project to accelerate innovation. It is going to be a huge year for GainX, and I’m so excited I could just about explode.”

TORONTO , March 22, 2017 /CNW/ – Fleet Complete®, a leading global IoT provider of fleet telematics and mobile workforce technology, continues its growth through the acquisition of BigRoad, a leading provider of hours-of-service (HOS) and regulatory compliance solutions. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. This partnership will enable Fleet Complete to offer the industry’s best electronic logging device (ELD) compliance platform in North America

Based in Waterloo’s thriving tech hub, known as Canada’s Silicon Valley, BigRoad was founded to address the new HOS regulations imposed on the commercial motor vehicle (CMV) industry. The company released one of the first mobile HOS applications, BigRoad Mobile App, and today, with over 480,000 downloads, it is the most downloaded HOS application available. It continues to receive rave reviews on Google Play and iTunes, solidifying its premier position in the market.

In advance of the ELD mandate, BigRoad launched DashLink, an engine-connected electronic logging device that provides owner-operators and commercial fleets with a scalable, affordable, and easy-to-use solution to meet the upcoming FMCSA and Canadian Ministry of Transport requirements. Today, over 30,000 fleets in North America rely on BigRoad to achieve ELD compliance ahead of the mandated deadline.

“We are very excited about this acquisition,” said Jake McGuire , Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Customer Success at BigRoad, “BigRoad is an established leader in the HOS and ELD compliance space and now, supported by the Fleet Complete IoT platform, I am confident we will continue to exceed customer expectations by providing the best ELD and connected vehicle solution on the market.”

Fleet Complete’s acquisition of BigRoad is part of the company’s explosive growth, following its expansion into Europe in 2015 and Australia in 2016. Fleet Complete recently received the Greater Toronto Area Top 100 Employer award, ascertaining its position as one of the most forward-thinking workplaces in the tech industry. Striving to lead the global market with a superior and the most comprehensive telematics platform, Fleet Complete’s partnership with BigRoad squarely positions its ELD and HOS solutions as the best in the industry.

“BigRoad is an impressive organization that has had a laser focus on creating the industry’s leading product for ELD compliance,” said Tony Lourakis , CEO of Fleet Complete. “Outperforming the competition in usability and connectivity, BigRoad’s driver-friendly and feature-rich application will be a great complement to our integrated platform, giving Fleet Complete customers the most reliable top-of-the-line HOS solution.”

Supported by Fleet Complete’s expansive IoT infrastructure, BigRoad will continue to operate and sell directly to owner-operators and fleets, maintaining the BigRoad brand. Whereas the integrated Fleet Complete BigRoad platform will be offered through the North American partner channels, AT&T and TELUS.

“Leveraging BigRoad’s immense success and combining it with Fleet Complete’s strong partnerships with North America’s mobile carrier elite, we can capture the largest share of the 4 million+ truck driver market,” says Lourakis. “Through this integration, all of our customers, from individual truck drivers to large commercial fleets, will be equipped with the industry’s best ELD compliance solution before the December 2017 deadline.”

Media Release

The Accelerator Centre (AC) is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with global professional services firm, EY.

The partnership demonstrates the two organizations’ collective commitment to supporting the Toronto Waterloo corridor startup ecosystem and to facilitating economic growth in the region.

As the exclusive professional services partner for our Graduate Program, EY’s partnership allows our graduates to leverage EY’s broad expertise and international network to further accelerate their growth at a local and global scale.

The partnership also facilitates a series of learning events that provide current AC clients with access to advice from best-in-class professional service leaders across industries and sets them up for long-term success.

“I am excited to welcome EY as an Accelerator Centre Innovation Partner – they bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise that will greatly benefit our clients and graduates as they grow and scale their businesses,” says Paul Salvini, CEO, Accelerator Centre.

About the Accelerator Center

The AC is a world-class startup incubator dedicated to building and scaling sustainable, globally competitive companies and to commercializing talent and advanced research technologies emerging from academic institutions.

The AC offers milestone-based programming alongside a proven mentorship model to help our clients grow their business

With 55 program graduates, AC companies represent some of the most successful startups in the Toronto-Waterloo corridor, translating to more than 1,500 new jobs, over $500 million in revenue and a collective $2 billion in valuations.

EY’s worldwide Growth Markets Network is dedicated to serving the changing needs of high- growth companies. For more than 30 years, we’ve helped many of the world’s most dynamic and ambitious companies grow into market leaders. Whether working with international mid-cap companies or early-stage venture-backed businesses, our professionals draw upon their extensive experience, insight and global resources to help your business succeed.

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

EY refers to the global organization and may refer to one or more of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.

From businesses, to manufacturers, to everyday hobbyists 3D printing offers an accessible, safe and cost effective way to bring designs off the page and into life. Desktop 3D printing is igniting a new wave of innovation in the education sector, where 3D printing presents an incredible opportunity for STEAM based learning opportunities that span virtually every discipline from K-12 and beyond.

Jeremy Hedges and his team are capitalizing on that goldmine of opportunity with their company InkSmith. A University of Laurier grad, Jeremy initially founded InkSmith a couple of years ago to improve the sustainability of 3D printing feedstock. But like many startups, he found himself pivoting the company toward the education market after realizing the untapped opportunity for learning presented by the 3D technologies he represented.

“I estimate only 20% of Canadian schools today have access to 3D printers, but in the next few years they’re going to become a standard tool in every classroom and library,” says Jeremy. “It’s a real blue sky market and a powerful legacy to be a part of empowering future generations to tackle the world’s biggest problems!

Jeremy, the son of a teacher, is quick to point out that this isn’t a story about 3D printer hardware. “At the end of the day, the 3D printer is just the tool. InkSmith is an edtech company focused on inspiring kids and teachers to use STEAM-based learning technologies in the classroom. We don’t want to throw a 3D printer into the school and hope it works. We want to enable STEAM programming with a turnkey solution for education that provides professional development, curriculum based course projects, 3D printers, materials, the technical support and everything else they need to make it happen.”

Jeremy, the son of a teacher and Wilfrid Laurier University grad, spent his formative years leading community and youth programs. “I was always looking to make an impact,” he confesses. With 3D printing, he saw a cool niche where he could build a company and at the same time empower kids not just to learn about the world’s problems, but to become the innovators that solve them as well.

“With 3D printing and modelling technologies, we can get kids learning environmental science to design their own aquaponics system, or build 3D printed catapults to test physics theories. There are so many applications for learning engineering principles, mathematics principles, and even the arts,” he explains, noting that Inksmith is working currently with the Stratford Festival to use 3D printing for prop making, and to construct mini stage replicas to understand and test how props move, and how actors use the physical space.

One of the most exciting developments for Inksmith in the last year has been a budding partnership with the York Region District School Board. The company and school board have jointly applied for a funding grant to pilot the Inksmith solution into dozens of schools. Should the grant funding get approved, this project will serve as the pilot test for the federal government and provincial education ministries to invest in Canada wide deployment. In anticipation of a successful application, Jeremy is building out his team and beefing up the company’s academic credentials. A recently posted job description for teachers to help Inksmith develop course materials brought in 20 highly qualified applicants in a single day.

“JumpStart is a great program and it was super valuable to have access to mentors and call us on bad ideas says. It gave us the time to prototype and build a business model that works. Because of the ACJumpStart funding, we were able to really research and understand the market and hire our first employees to build out our product and sales. As a result, we’re at the leading edge of this industry and are the only company in Canada providing this kind of solution. I can confidently say we wouldn’t be here at all without ACJumpStart.” – Jeremy Hedges

Categories

Meta

Accelerator Centre – Headquarters

295 Hagey Blvd 1st Floor, West Entrance Waterloo, Ontario N2L 6R5

info@acceleratorcentre.com

(519) 342-2400

Who We Are

The Accelerator Centre is an award winning startup incubator dedicated to building and scaling sustainable, globally competitive technology firms; and to commercializing advanced research technologies emerging from academic institutions.